1. Field of the Invention
The general field of the present innovation is fishing rod attachments, (Class 43, Subclass 25); more particularly attachments to fishing rods which are utilized in casting line and possess a spinning reel attached underneath the rod, as opposed to offshore rods which possess a non-spinning reel attached above the rod; specifically attachments to casting rods which provide an auxiliary hand grip.
2. General Background
Casting rods which possess a spinning reel attached underneath the rod are typically grasped by the hand which is not used in operating the reel along a portion proximate the reel. Given an inclined, non-vertical disposition of the rod in use, the hand grasping the rod is forced into a position which is unnatural and uncomfortable; the wrist being bent downward from the substantially straight extension of the forearm and rotated slightly outward. Grasping the rod in this manner achieves the best control of a casting type rod during fishing but also occasions fatigue after a certain length of time for many people.
3. Specific Background
Many devices comprising attachments to fishing rods with the object of improving hand comfort while fishing are known and at least two are intended specifically to provide an auxiliary hand grip for a casting type rod. U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,653,406 & 4,041,635 issued, respectively, to Grabiak and Savage both disclose attachments to the rearward most portion of a rod, rearward of the reel, extending upward and intended to be held between the upper arm and torso of the person using the same. Neither provides an auxiliary hand grip and both essentially provide means of resisting rotation of the rod, and maintaining the rod at a given longitudinal inclination.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,761,236 & 3,372,510, issued to Gaston and Arsenault, respectively, each disclose an attachment to a casting rod intended to provide an auxiliary hand grip. The former consists essentially of an extension disposed perpendicular to the rod attached at a point proximate the reel and directed outward from the rod opposite the handle to the spinning reel. This disposition enables resistance of rod rotation as an auxiliary, hand grip which avoids both bending of the wrist from the extension of the forearm and rotation of the wrist. However, in being disposed laterally to the rod, it affords very little control of the rod in any direction parallel to the longitudinal axis of the rod therefore severely restricting control of the rod in fishing. The auxiliary handle disclosed by Gaston is further shown as screwing into the rod which necessitates manufacture of a special rod. While this construction may not be strictly necessary to the invention of Gaston's, it indicates the problems associated with cantilever construction wherein all the forces applied to the structure act upon the juncture as a lever acts upon a fulcrum.
The patent cited above issued to Arsenault discloses an attachment along the rod rearward of the reel possessing a handle comprising an extension upward from the rod proximate the reel possessing a small inclination forward from perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the rod, a sleeve parallel to and flush with the surface of the rod terminating in a V-shaped brace rearward intended to cradle the forearm. This configuration provides resistance to rotation with the V-shaped brace and affords an auxiliary hand grip which is aligned with the substantially vertical plane in which movement of the rod is desired during fishing. The hand grip, however, is free at the end distal the rod, and comprises a cantilever. The hand grip thus behaves as a lever possessing a fulcrum point in the single lower juncture of the hand grip to rest of the device. This configuration places severe demands upon the structure with regard to physical stresses. The rearward V-shaped brace, moreover, prevents the placement of the rod in a typical rod holder which has an essentially cylindrical construction possessing an inner diameter which will not admit this V-shaped extension from the rod.